Some Random Roadside Ramblings this week, occasioned by a few drives (and one walk) around the city over the past few days.
Let’s start at a walking pace. I decided one morning that I would walk in to work, from my apartment at 15th and Foothills to the CFIS studio at Studio 2880. Little did I know I was taking my life into my hands.
I spent almost as much time walking on the road as I did on the sidewalk, thanks to the prevalence of ice patches on the sidewalk. It’s funny how much black ice looks like water on the sidewalk, and how much both of them look like just a dark patch of sidewalk.
I didn’t take a spill, but I did have to do a bit of arm-waving a couple of times to avoid.
Switching to things I saw while driving, I’ve noticed a few more bicycles on the road lately. The vast majority of them are being ridden legally, on the road, in the bike lanes (where available), by people wearing helmets.
There are, as always, a few exceptions, like the fellow I saw riding down the street. He had a helmet, but it was hanging from the handlebars, and he was talking on a cellphone as he rode along.
I also saw a pair of cyclists who apparently felt the conversation they were having was more important than their health. They were riding side-by-side down a busy street, which meant one of them was definitely outside the bike lane.
I also came across something that brings up a question I have yet to see an answer for: Are electric wheelchairs and scooters vehicles or pedestrians?
As I was going down 15th Avenue, I saw a scooter in the bike lane, which meant the operator felt he was on a vehicle (the same as a bike).
However, he was riding towards the traffic, which is the direction pedestrians are usually taught to travel, since you can see the traffic better.
So was he a vehicle (in which case he should have been travelling the same direction as the traffic) or was he a pedestrian (in which case he should have been on the sidewalk)?
